Watching Crap Anime for the Actor
There are a lot of actor fans out there who would watch every film or TV show with their favorite actor in it.
That is basically the same as your average seiyuu-ota types. The difference is that in Japan they’re all into brand management and the like, and for some of these seiyuu types, they make the fans run through all sorts of hoops, thanks to Japan’s developed idol scene.
Of course, it’s not the whole story. Many prolific voice actors, working in the background, do not get all that name recognition if they don’t run their careers in that direction. A minor fan favorite, Satsuki Yukino, is probably a good example of a female voice acting type who has been in a ton of shows as secondary roles, dabbled a bit in doing songs and what not, obtained some recognition, but ultimately lived as a straight-up seiyuu. On the other hand you get people like Kikuko Inoue who is playing it totally like an idol celebrity with everything from fan club events to selling DVDs of her eating lunch. She maintains her popularity to some extent even after starting a family. It’s weird, but that’s what some people want I guess.
And there are many more Satsuki-sans than Kikuko-sans in the industry (to pick on some ex-Animazement guests). A glimpse at far most male voice actors beyond the age of 40 will reveal to you how many that toiled, even in great roles, are just getting by like a normal person. Basically, even if these folks have fans (and they do), it’s very difficult to watch every single show your favorite actor is in, just because voice acting is that kind of a profession versus stage or film or TV acting. Plus, sometimes you’re just an extra or a 1-liner. In other words, unless you’re like Nana Mizuki or her ilk, only your very true fans will bother with a show that otherwise stunk, with a notable number that makes a difference.
So what happens when you take a bunch of voice actors that have steady following and stick them in a crap show, hoping people will watch it? Does it work? I don’t know. The Japanese did it for Dragonaut. Funimation will too. Or at least try. It would be interesting to see how much “brand” power these American dub actors have. All that convention touring must do something for them as individuals! Do they sell DVDs, or do DVDs sell them? It is a mystery.
Huh? People actually watch anime for the seiyuu in it?
Yes. In fact it can be big enough of a draw in some small cases. I know more than one X-phile who saw Mononoke Hime just for Gillian Anderson, for example… And that’s just one movie.
I will admit that having seiyuu that I like generally makes me more likely to check a show out. I don’t think I’ve ever watched something terrible just for the seiyuu though.
Character designers / original artists ars another story, however.
I can’t wait for the Dragonaut dub. C’mon overexaggerated JIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINs and TOAAAAAAAAAAAAs!
I’ve always thought that it’s hard to compare the same seiyuu across shows at times because unlike live-acting, it’s difficult to really comment effectively about whether a certain seiyuu did a solid job unless the voice and the character’s demeanor are a total mismatch. Maybe other people can note the differences, but I’m not one of them.
TOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. Uh.
I can sometimes tell the difference, but yes, it’s definitely harder than live action.
I did it for Akino Murata (Sochie Heim), because she has such short list of roles. But I really don’t go out of my way to do so.
Now if only we could get a Dragonaut live action! JIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!!!!! *straps thong on face*.
Ugh. All that name-screaming is giving me a headache.
Yeah, I remember the whole thing with the Dragonaut cast but couldn’t bear to bring myself to get past episode 3. Even with Tomokasu Sugita, it was still too much.
Usually I notice the voices when I look up the show and find it surprising who does what in each series. The only times I actually watched a show just for the seiyuu were Strongest Disciple Kenichi (Tomokasu Seki) and Asura Cryin’ (Haruka Tomatsu), the later of which I stopped watching after five eps. If a show’s not entertaining, though, nothing’s going to keep me watching it.
Now Kabitzin pulling off a Hentai Kamen? That would be a riot regardless.
WTB Kabitzin + Hentai Kamen.
Well I gave up watching Aikkan even thought it had Mamiko Noto’s voice in it. I don’t unusually watch an anime for seiyuu, maybe start on it..and then move past it.